What carrier is typically used in flavor emulsions?

Gum acacia — also called gum arabic — is the most commonly used carrier and stabilizer in flavor emulsions. It functions as an encapsulant, wrapping around the oil-soluble flavor compounds and keeping them dispersed in the water-based system. This is what gives emulsions their heat tolerance and stability advantages over other flavor formats. When reviewing product specifications, confirming that gum acacia is the carrier is a good way to validate that the emulsion is built for the kind of performance you're expecting.